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Sat, 20 Oct 2007, 08:18 PM

Pro Stock Qualifying Notes, Final Session

By David Gerard

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. - Notes from final, round 3 qualifying in Torco Race Fuels CompetitionPlus Pro Stock at the 2007 Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series, IHRA World Finals Presented by The U.S. Air Force featuring UTI CHampionship Sunday listing lane, driver name, elapsed time/top speed this round, position in order following run, best prior elapsed time/speed, and position in order prior to run:

Left Lane: Elijah Morton Runs 6.378/199.79, Now #9; Best prior run: 7.269/207.50, Was #26
Right Lane: Ron Miller Runs 11.874/95.60, Now #27; Best prior run: 10.022/87.40, Was #27

7:38 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 72 degrees, relative humidity 49 percent, barometer 29.61 inches, adjusted altitude 1,455 feet, track temperature 80 degrees.

It's full dark now and we finally start the Saturday night Quarter-Max Pro Stock Challenge...AKA: Last Man Standing. Both cars are loose off the line and Morton may have been able to bump in otherwise. Miller clicked it early.

Left Lane: John Montecalvo Runs 6.355/219.72, Now #5; Best prior run: 6.914/145.09, Was #26
Right Lane: Rocky Watford Runs 18.224/91.18, Now #26; Best prior run: 6.622/209.10, Was #25

Dan Sweeney is on the bump spot at 6.454. Montecalvo is fifth in the points and usually a top half qualifier. He drives around the shake and spin on the starting line and runs well into the top half of the field. Watford fires and falls back.

Left Lane: Sylvester Barnes Runs 6.603/211.69, Now #25; Best prior run: 6.605/209.88, Was #25
Right Lane: Tom Lee Runs 6.429/215.24, Now #13; Best prior run: 6.570/208.42, Was #24

John Bartunek is on the bump spot at 6.442. Lee moves up a bunch, but not enough to qualify. Barnes repeats and will join the crowd racing on Sunday for now.

Montecalvo is our current "Last Man Standing".

Left Lane: Andreas Karampelas No Time, Now #24; Best prior run: 6.550/209.30, Was #24
Right Lane: Kelly Martin Runs 6.430/214.48, Now #15; Best prior run: 6.516/211.83, Was #23

Martin sneaks into the field with a much better run. Karampelas just sits in the lights at the green and is pushed away.

Left Lane: Chuck DeMory No Time, Now #23; Best prior run: 6.515/213.00, Was #23
Right Lane: Bert Jackson Runs 6.842/214.08, Now #21; Best prior run: 6.468/215.79, Was #21

Jackson hits the rev limiter in low gear and can't recover. DeMory is a No Show.

Left Lane: Anthony Paone Runs 13.546/73.11, Now #22; Best prior run: 6.479/211.66, Was #22
Right Lane: Larry O'Brien Runs 11.184/97.05, Now #20; Best prior run: 6.457/213.06, Was #20

Two broken runs. Lots of shake and Paone's can makes a hard move towards the center line. O'Brien just lifts.

Right Lane: John Bartunek Runs 18.604/53.25, Now #18; Best prior run: 6.442/215.58, Was #18

The tires run away from the car at the hit and Bartunek lifts

Left Lane: Dan Sweeney Runs 6.385/216.51, Now #12; Best prior run: 6.454/213.54, Was #19
Right Lane: Steve Spiess Runs 6.342/219.04, Now #2; Best prior run: 6.434/212.19, Was #16

Spiess is on the bump and looking to improve. We finally get a side by side pass and its a good race. Both cars run well into the field and Spiess is the new #2 qualifier and the new "Last Man Standing".

Left Lane: Adelbertus Kelkboom Runs 6.430/209.01, Now #18; Best prior run: 6.436/214.38, Was #18
Right Lane: Rickie Smith Runs 6.337/219.22, Now #2; Best prior run: 6.375/218.37, Was #10

Two more good passes, but Kelkboom just misses the bump and is reported to have contacted the guard rail after the finish line. Smith goes all the way to the #2 spot.

Left Lane: Rob Mansfield Runs 6.961/165.36, Now #16; Best prior run: 6.429/214.11, Was #16
Right Lane: Jeff Dobbins Runs 6.319/220.66, Now #2; Best prior run: 6.370/219.19, Was #10

Mansfield is on the bump spot at 6.429 and looking to improve. The right lane skates around at the hit and Mansfield just spins hard. Dobbins is still able to take over the current #2 spot and the LMS pole.

Left Lane: Dean Goforth Runs 6.348/218.69, Now #7; Best prior run: 6.422/214.45, Was #14
Right Lane: Cary Goforth Runs 6.313/219.54, Now #1; Best prior run: 6.358/218.94, Was #9

Cary Goforth leads Dean Goforth off the line and pulls steadily ahead to the new #1 spot and he is now the Last Man Standing. Good run for Dean too and he bumps into the top half of the field.

Left Lane: Bob Bertsch Runs 6.351/219.58, Now #9; Best prior run: 6.393/217.53, Was #14
Right Lane: Robert Patrick Runs 6.291/220.04, Now #1; Best prior run: 6.354/213.91, Was #9

WOW! Patrick takes the big red Ford into the top spot with a great looking pass. He is the new "Last Man Standing". Bertsch misses the top half of the field by 0.019.

Left Lane: Frank Gugliotta Runs 6.324/218.62, Now #6; Best prior run: 6.359/218.44, Was #12
Right Lane: John Nobile Runs 6.305/219.47, Now #2; Best prior run: 6.351/217.39, Was #10

...and the hits keep coming. Two more great looking pass and two more big moves up the ladder. Nobile gets the current #2 position.

Left Lane: Pete Berner Runs 6.281/220.80, Now #1; Best prior run: 6.317/219.36, Was #4
Right Lane: Brian Gahm Runs 16.837/49.12, Now #9; Best prior run: 6.345/220.22, Was #9

Nasty! Gahm gets way loose at the green and quickly lifts. Berner misses his chance to keep the five point advantage by red lighting, so the points spread is just ten at the end of qualifying. Great pass and he will have the #1 spot for tomorrow's eliminations

8:08 p.m. Rob Mansfield is on the bump spot at 6.429.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink